Thursday, September 20, 2007

US team finds World War II bombers, fighter off Corsica

CALVI, France - A US military team searching for the remains of American soldiers from World War II has discovered the wreckage of two B-17 bombers and a P-47 fighter plane off the coast of Corsica.

The 13-man team led by Captain George Mitroka conducted seven days of marine searches near the French Mediterranean island, equipped with sonars, radars, cameras and video equipment.

A B-17 bomber that crashed off the coast of Calvi in northern Corsica in February 1944 after a missed landing was found at a site known to local divers for decades.

A second one was discovered near Ajaccio airport at a depth of only 12 metres, said Howard Mariteragi, a member of the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, which seeks to account for US soldiers missing from war.

The P-47 fighter plane was discovered off the coast of Bastia after a Corsican diver provided the US team with the exact GPS coordinates of the wreckage.

The US team, which was making its first visit to Corsica, did not recover any remains at the wreckage sites, but plans to return for further searches.